Association Leadership - November/December 2007 - (Page 18)

organizational adaptability Adaptability During change in the pharmaceutical business and industry,” Martin said. Add to this setback the fact that over the last ﬁve years pharmaceutical companies under heightened ﬁnancial restrictions, from both government and their own associations, have drastically withdrawn ﬁnancial support of TPA, resulting in what Martin called a “complete shutdown overnight.” The peril, however, actually hastened the association’s progress. “Those hits were the best things that could have happened to TPA,” Martin said. “I think an organization like ours needs to learn how to not be dependent on anybody.” When revenue was shrinking, Martin decided one of the best ways to strengthen the association was to bring in more high-quality staff without reducing the association’s existing staff. With additional staff, the association would be better able to tend to the needs of its members. “Our biggest challenge was making sure that we communicated everything that was going on (to the independent practitioners) as change was happening,” he said. New staff also allowed the association to focus more heavily on increasing membership. Besides making phone calls and e-mailing surveys to non-members, asking their perspective and soliciting advice on improving the association, the staff has worked hard to recreate TPA’s image. “The way I see it,” Martin said, “you have folks now just graduating from S By Marianne Kunkel Naylor, LLC ince Napster’s introduction in 1999, more and more people rely on their computers or iPods to listen to their favorite tunes, and music stores across the country are being forced to close doors forever. It is the nature of an industry, whether music, food or airline, to change – sometimes even for the worst. And when an industry weakens, so does its association, right? Not necessarily. Consider the Texas Pharmacy Association (TPA), led since 2000 by CEO Jim Martin. When Medicare Part D went into effect Jan. 1, 2006, and the U.S. government began covering pharmaceutical expenses for individuals who previously could not afford them, the government also started paying for some who in the past had paid. Only now, the government pays less for prescriptions in place of these individuals who once paid more for them. In response, many pharmaceutical companies increased the cost of medicine. For pharmacists, Medicare Part D has meant a lessening proﬁt margin, which has especially hurt independent practitioners. The program’s initiation caused a “monumental 18 Association LEADERSHIP | November/December 2007

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Association Leadership - November/December 2007

Association Leadership - November/December 2007 Contents Chairman’s Column Homepage 60-Second Solutions TSAE Annual Meeting and Educational Conference Award Winners Event Sponsors Conference Highlights Adaptability During Difficult Times/Reinvented Associations 7 Measures of Success: Organizational Adaptability Crisis Calling Association Case Study: Who is Minding the Store – External Factors Between the Covers New Members Community Spotlight El Paso Index to Advertisers/Advertisers.com Board of Directors

Association Leadership - November/December 2007

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